Hey All,
Welcome to lucky no. 13. Hope you're finding inspiration in the links I share each week. You can always reply to this email with suggestions and feedback.
Enjoy. And if you're feeling inspired, pass it on.
“Rules of Business” via Stewart Butterfield
Slack co-founder and CEO wrote this succinct guide on how to run a business. Here's my favorite excerpt:
Every job you do has your signature on it
When I was around 10 or 11 years old, my father offered me $10 to move a cord of recently-delivered firewood from the driveway into the garage and stack it up inside (I am old; $10 was a great deal of money back then). I managed to get all the firewood inside but rather than it being stacked against the wall, it was more or less evenly distributed across the floor of the garage. I expected my payment, but instead got some advice: “Every job you do has your signature on it — do you really want to sign that?”
Creating Content for Jobs-To-Be-Done via Gregory Ciotti
Greg Ciotti runs the Help Scout blog (which is great) but it's his personal blog that I can't live without. This post outlines how to create content based on "jobs", not keywords.
I’ve learned more about content strategy from talking with our product and support teams than I have reading the silly shit that appears on most marketing sites.
The 30 Best Pieces of Advice for Entrepreneurs via First Round
This post is from 2014 but the advice is timeless. This is one you'll want to bookmark.
“There are two paths in life: Should and Must. We arrive at this crossroads over and over again. And each time, we get to choose,” says Elle Luna. “'Should' is how others want us to show up in the world — how we’re supposed to think, what we ought to say, what we should or shouldn’t do. Must is different. Must is who we are, what we believe, and what we do when we are alone with our truest, most authentic self.”
Interview with Chris Hadfield via Peter Mansbridge
Chris Hadfield, the retired Canadian astronaut, has a unique perspective of life here on Earth. The ties to business and marketing aren't immediately obvious but give it a chance. His thoughts on a one-way trip to Mars are especially interesting.
"We're all sort of on a one-way trip. It's just a matter of who's on your crew."
I found this little piece of advice on Automattic founder Matt Mullenweg's blog. I can't track down the original source. If you know, please do let me know.
Find three hobbies you love: one to make you money, one to keep you in shape, and one to be creative.
Have a great week!
Jimmy